


Colors Of The Beach

by xXPokeFictionXx_Is_A_Horrible_Username



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Colors, Crushes, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Idiots in Love, Light Angst, Like very light angst, Love, Love Confessions, Ocean, Poetry, barely there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:34:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25317628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xXPokeFictionXx_Is_A_Horrible_Username/pseuds/xXPokeFictionXx_Is_A_Horrible_Username
Summary: Hajime contemplates his feelings for Ibuki, who clearly likes him.
Relationships: Hinata Hajime/Mioda Ibuki
Comments: 6
Kudos: 37





	Colors Of The Beach

**Author's Note:**

  * For [xXPokefictionXx_isnt_that_bad_of_a_name](https://archiveofourown.org/users/xXPokefictionXx_isnt_that_bad_of_a_name/gifts).



There are a lot of words that Hajime Hinata could use to describe his best friend. 

  
His best friend was someone he’d met on Jabberwock Island, in the midst of the Killing School Trip. His best friend was probably the most energetic out of anyone there, or even, perhaps, out of anyone he’d ever met. His best friend tried to keep all of the other students in high spirits, working to cheer everyone up to the best of her ability. His best friend was unique, never afraid to broadcast her true colors, and encouraged him endlessly to do the same. 

His best friend was silly, passionate, dizzying in all of the right ways. Yet, in a sense, she seemed strangely lonely sometimes, when she thought no one else was around, or in a passing moment within their long conversations. She was confident, of course, but every once and awhile, when someone would react to something she said particularly poorly, a flash of hurt would cross her expression.

And yet, in spite of her pains, her insecurities, and all which held her back in life, his best friend continued forth, being herself, unabashed. His best friend unquestionably, admirably persevered through tough times. 

And his best friend, of course, was almost certainly in love with him. 

What he’d done to catch the attention of his best friend, Ibuki Mioda, he didn’t know. 

However, the signs of her crush were fairly obvious; The energetic musician had always been vocal about those she found to be attractive, and lately, she’d been openly gushing over him quite a bit. Her passing, “joking” comments about falling in love with him whenever he did something kind for her grew ever-more frequent, and her occasional, unprompted advice on how to pick up girls grew slightly more forced as time went on. 

Not only this, but her “Club Bonding” activities were growing more and more daring as time went on; Though she still engaged in a fair amount of her usual strange games, such as the headbanging contests (she’d been particularly insesient about those after Hajime had somehow managed to tie with her on the first one, much to his chagrin) and deliberately antagonizing her classmates in order to get them to play tag with her, but more often than not the games she came up with were brand new.

And, of course, these games grew progressively more… Questionable. 

Attempts to play the Pocky Game, two-person Spin The Bottle, and other such nonsense were made. Hajime had managed to dodge these, but each time he did, Ibuki looked all-the-more guilty and hopeless. 

It was after her latest attempt of trying to catch his attention that he finally decided that enough was enough. They couldn’t go on like this. 

Watching his friend looking so crushed with each carefully-dodged advance, he realized that he had to do something. Without closure, Ibuki would only continue trying to “subtly” hint her intentions to him. She’d only continue growing sadder and more uncertain with each attempt. Hajime had decided that it was rather uncomfortable to watch his usually-confident friend fumble like this.

So, he had to give her a definitive answer so that she’d finally be able to put her feelings to rest. A definite yes or a definite no. Either way, despite how much a rejection may hurt, Ibuki clearly needed an answer.

The question, of course, was how to bring that up in conversation.

Now, Hajime tried to be certain in himself when it came to his deductions; If the Class Trial system had taught him anything so far, it was that he had to be sure of himself. However, again, he wasn’t quite sure what Ibuki saw in him; She was attractive, talented, and fun to be around. Out of anyone she could’ve picked to like, he wasn’t sure why he fit the bill.

  
Then again, he supposed that romantic feelings weren’t really something one could control.

But, that also brought up another possibility; What if he was  _ wrong?  _ On the off chance that this romantic behavior was just a side effect of getting closer to Ibuki, if she would’ve done this with  _ anyone  _ she trusted as deeply as him, well…

The idea was… Worrisome, to say the least. 

He was fairly certain of himself, but nevertheless, Hajime decided that if he were to do this, he’d have to do this properly. He’d have to wait for the right moment to bring up the topic to his friend; Though, knowing Ibuki, opportunities would likely be plentiful. Surely, if he had a proper segue, she’d understand his questioning.

This, of course, would also give him more time to prepare and to be sure of himself. 

So, Hajime solidified his resolve, and he waited.   
  
As it turned out, he didn’t need to wait for long at all. 

The very next morning, Ibuki had approached him at breakfast. Grinning from ear to ear, she’d invited him to help inspire her to come up with some more lyrics. Though Hajime had already agreed to meet up with Kazuichi later that day, he didn’t have any plans until later in the afternoon, so he figured that he was free to do as he pleased until then. 

So, as soon as breakfast ended, he let himself be tugged towards a remote, quiet section of the beach by an energetic Ibuki. As the pair walked, he thought once more about his plan, and he resolved to pay extra attention to what the girl said today; She talked quite quickly, so this may be a bit of a challenge to do, but nevertheless, Hajime resolved to try his best. 

So, after making a quick pit stop at his room, Hajime set out to find Ibuki.

This, of course, ended up not taking long at all; As it turns out, Ibuki had been waiting outside of his room for him to appear. So, as soon as he’d opened his door, he’d been greeted by a familiar voice’s energetic greeting of, “Hey hey, Hajime!!” 

He yelped, flinching and stumbling back a few steps. His companion frowned.   
  
“J-Jesus, Ibuki, d-don’t scare me like that!” He scolded, pressing a hand to his still beating heart. The girl’s frown deepened.   
  
“Did… Hajime already forget that we were supposed to meet up?” She questioned sadly, shoulders drooping and eyes downcast. 

“Huh?” He blinked. “No, of course not, I was going to find you now. I just didn’t expect you to be right there…” 

Ibuki’s disappointed frown quickly shifted back into her usual, impossibly bright grin, her eyes sparkling excitedly. “So you didn’t forget about Ibuki? Oh, what a relief!” She cried, joy evident. 

Though the comment was obviously meant to be taken as a joke, it sounded just a bit too genuine for Hajime’s tastes, his heart panging in his chest. So, expression twinged with a slight worry, he replied, “Right, I would never.” 

She giggled in return, a bright, flattered smile across her face. Hajime decided that he much preferred seeing Ibuki smile like this to seeing her upset; Then again, wouldn’t anyone?

Either way, now wasn’t the time to worry about it. As of now, his hangout session with the Ultimate Musician had officially begun. 

“Anyway,” He continued, “You wanted to come up with some new lyrics, yeah?”   
  
“Ding ding ding!” Ibuki chimed. “Correct!” 

“Alright then. Our usual spot?”    
  
Ibuki hummed an affirmative, and without further delay, skipped away. Hajime followed behind, and now that the girl’s attention was off of him, he found himself deep in thought once more. 

When the subject of his friend’s affections came to light, how would he respond? Though he’d thought it over for the entire morning, he still couldn’t figure out an answer. What would he say? What would he do? What would happen? 

Though he wished he could know, the truth was that there was no way to predict that. Though human feelings always tended to be unpredictable, it certainly didn’t help that Ibuki was already one of the most unpredictable people he knew. This conversation would likely go places that he wouldn’t dream to expect.

Still, he’d have to press on. Even if he didn’t know where this confrontation would go, even if the thought of not knowing how this would end up  _ terrified  _ him, he knew that he couldn’t ignore this. For Ibuki’s sake, an answer was needed. So, even if trying to find that answer panicked him, he knew that he had to do it. 

But, speaking of that answer… He still wasn’t sure what he was going to say. Though he was unsure of what Ibuki would say, he should at  _ least  _ know what  _ he  _ was going to say. 

He thought back, brow furrowing. Ibuki was the only person on the island he’d connected with so deeply; Though he did his best to talk with everyone on the island, she was the only person he met up with consistently, making time for her at every given opportunity.

Ibuki was, perhaps, the only person his age that he’d connected to this deeply at all, which he decided was fairly depressing, considering the pathetically-short amount of time they’d known each other for. Though she certainly wasn’t the only person who’d tried to befriend him, and, now that they were on Jabberwock Island with the other Ultimates, she wasn’t the only interesting person around, she’d managed to break down his defences and worm her way into his heart unlike anyone else. As unlikely and slightly-alarming as it’d been, the truth of the matter was the same as ever. Like it or not, Ibuki was his closest confidant now. 

Despite the short time frame, Hajime was confident in calling the Ultimate Musician his best friend. They’d gone through all sorts of experiences together, ranging from the usual type of shenanigans one would expect high schoolers to wind up in to literal deadly perils, but throughout it all, he’d never doubted Ibuki’s character. For as long as he’d known her, Hajime had found her to be genuine in who she was. 

To be able to be so unabashedly true to yourself was something that Hajime couldn’t help but admire. His own sense of self had been rather skewed as of late, but even if he knew who he was, would he be able to express that as confidently as Ibuki? Though he wished he could deny it, he already knew that the answer was negatory. 

But what did it all  _ mean?  _ Though he had all of the pieces of the puzzle, he couldn’t seem to piece them together and form a proper answer. Of preference, of bonds, of tests of will and of admiration, he found that Ibuki had checked every box. But what did that imply? Though she was his closest companion, did that mean that he felt the same way about her that she felt about him? Or was she a strong, platonic force in his life, someone he could rely on through anything?    
  
He didn’t know.    
  
His eyes scanned quietly up her back as she continued on ahead of him, skipping along cheerfully. 

Ibuki was, of course, attractive. Anyone could see that much. Her fashion sense was pretty eccentric, yes, but that didn’t take away from the fact that she was pretty. But acknowledging aesthetic beauty wasn’t the same as having romantic feelings for someone either, of course.

His heartrate picked up as he looked on at her, concern at the forefront of his mind.

Hajime’s brow furrowed, frown deepening. Yet another point of contemplation in the issue that was his feelings in regards to Ibuki Mioda. 

Before he knew it, though, the familiar pair of pink eyes were locked back onto him, snapping him out of his thoughts. He blinked, realizing that they had arrived at their destination. 

“Alright!” The Ultimate chirped, grinning and clapping her hands together. “Inspire Ibuki, Hajime!”    
  
“Uhh…” He paused.    
  
Shit. He’d been so busy trying to decipher his own feelings that he forgot about coming up with a plan to try and help Ibuki come up with lyrics. 

He tensed. Well, he could probably improvise as he’d often done in the past. 

“Um, how’s poetry?” He suggested; It’d been a go-to for him when trying to help spark the musician’s creativity, and it hadn’t failed him yet. He wasn’t very good at it, often coming up with lines on the spot, but she never seemed to mind. 

“Sounds fine!” She replied, smiling sweetly as she waited for him to continue with glittering eyes. 

He sighed quietly, eyes darting about to try to find something to monologue about. They locked quietly onto the ocean behind him. 

“... Water,” He began, “Full of life, rooted in the green of plants and the reflection of the sky shining down. A cool blue shade.”    
  
In his peripherals, Hajime could see how Ibuki’s whole expression shifted, her whole face glowing with excitement and her body language shifting to match that. It would’ve been clear to anyone who would’ve seen her in this moment how eager she was to hear what the impromptu-poet had to say next, and though Hajime’s focus was elsewhere, for a brief, fleeting moment, he couldn't help but admire that about her. He didn’t need to guess what she was feeling most times, yet somehow, her ideas remained unpredictable and exciting. It was strange, seeming almost contradictory, yet it was also encapsulating, and it made his experiences with her all-the-more fun and interesting. It was one trait out of many that made his best friend who she was, and it was one trait out of many that Hajime appreciated. 

His breath hitched as he watched the waves crash into the sand, light bubbles forming around the impact points, breaking him out of his brief pause. “Seafoam…” He went on. “Rolling onto pale beaches, forming and bursting into wisps of white.” 

He felt his heart begin to beat faster as his friend’s expression softened, hanging off of every word like a child being read a story book, movement soothed and growing softer and more relaxed as his words led her to being fully entranced. He gulped silently, doing his best to avoid any more pauses for fear of making his poetry attempt sound awkward and stilted. 

His gaze shifted outward, away from the shore and back to the expanse of water over the horizon. His eyes flicked downward, a new talking point quickly coming to mind.    
  
“Darkness… Deep, abysmal and dangerous, full of hungry struggle and gnashing teeth. Black and invisible to most, yet… Alluring, mysterious and soft. Seawater pooled in your hands and trickling back into the ground.” 

He looked back to his hands as he spoke, eyes wavering. His arms were relatively pale, his palms and fingertips slightly red, blood pumping under his skin. He returned his gaze to Ibuki, her familiar eyes staring right back at him.    
  
Before he knew it, he was speaking again. “Pink.” He breathed out. 

  
After a moment, he realizes his mistake, eyes widening slightly. But just as quickly as it’d come, his panic ebbed away, more words coming to him as he considered what he’d come up with so far. 

“Reflecting off of the waves as the sunset fades in, tainting the waters as red blood enters the fray…” He sighed, relieved but also slightly hesitant, looking to his friend for a reaction. “Beautifully framing the dunes of pale sands.” 

As he finished off his poem, a quick pause followed before Ibuki seemed to realize he was done speaking, blinking. Quickly breaking out of her entranced state, an ecstatic grin lit up her face, wide enough to make her cheeks ache. 

“Hajimeee, that was BEAUTIFUL!” She cried out, bouncing in place excitedly. “Almost as beautiful as Hajime himself!”    
  
His eyes widened, mouth opening in preparation to bring up his concerns, but before he had the chance, Ibuki went on, his struggle unnoticed. 

“Ibuki’s already got, like, twenty eight lines ready! The latest song’s gonna be called,  _ ‘Help, I’m Drowning And Nobody’s Noticed Because Of How Hard They’re Jamming!’ _ and it’s gonna be a banger!” She rambled, grin unyielding. “Ibuki’s already got an idea for an instrumental, too! It’s gonna go kinda like, brrrAHHP, errrg, AAAAH- at least in the beginning, but it’ll get even more intense as the song goes on! It’s gonna be great, don’tcha think, Hajime?! ” 

He froze, tensing.   
  
“U-Uhh, umm…” He stuttered, caught off guard by suddenly having the pause in conversation needed to communicate his point. But ultimately, he still wasn’t sure of what exactly he was going to say, and fearing that the moment had already passed, he only responded with, “Yeah, that sounds great, Ibuki. I especially like the ahhh bit”, tone defeated. 

She looked to him skeptically, eyes narrowing. “First of all, it’s pronounced AAAAH, the volume is important.”    
  
“R-Right, sorry…”    
  
“Second, why are you holding back?”   
  
“Huh? I guess I’m just not as used to screaming as you are, generally it makes me worry about being a public inconvenience, so I kinda-”

“Nooo, not that!” She interrupted, placing her hands on her hips. “What Ibuki means is that you JUST recited a pretty poem about the blue and the pink and the dark! And no one judged you for that! So let it out! Tell Ibuki what you’re thinking!” 

“H-Huh?! O-Oh, well…” He paused, reluctant. He didn’t expect that Ibuki would notice that something was on his mind, let alone so quickly. Now that he had her full attention, he couldn’t help but feel a bit awkward. “N-Nevermind, it’s nothing…” He attempted to reassure her.

  
“Ughhh, Ibuki HATES that!” She groaned. “You’re reminding Ibuki of Middle School Ibuki!”   
  
“U-Uhh-”    
  
“Come on, just out with it, no one will mind, least of all Ibuki! Promise!” She swore, looking him dead in the eyes.

  
It was at this moment that Hajime knew he couldn’t be dishonest anymore; Not with his best friend looking him dead in the eyes like this. 

“Did… Did you really mean it?” He asked, a slight warmth pooling in his cheeks. “When you said I was beautiful, I mean.” 

The energetic girl’s expression shifted to that of a blank, serious stare. Her usually light and joyous eyes suddenly bore straight into his soul.   
  


“Of course. Why wouldn’t Ibuki mean that?” 

“E-Easy, I’m not doubting my looks or anything! I’m okay, I guess, but that’s not what I was worried about, not exactly…” Hajime explained, already knowing where the girl’s train of thought had headed despite her words doing little to imply it. Her gaze softened, seemingly satisfied with his answer, though a skeptical edge still laced her expression.

A hand cupped the back of his neck worriedly as he swallowed heavily, heart pounding in his chest. Moving past the lump in his throat and finally forcing out the words, he said, “Just, uh… How far do those feelings… Go, exactly?”    
  
Finally, the cat was out of the bag, words piercing through the silence like a bullet. Ibuki’s reaction was, luckily, not one of someone who’d been (metaphorically) shot, though.

“Ohh, Hajime’s wondering about whether or not Ibuki’s in love with him!” She chirped, cheery as ever, before pausing. “Wait. Oh no.” 

“Yes, uh, that…”   
  
“Ahh, Ibuki should’ve expected this…” She chuckled, stilted, tugging at her hair with a fist as her face flushed red. Her eyes darted away from Hajime’s form. “Wasn’t exactly subtle, huh?”   
  
“Not… Not really.”    
  
“Um, well, this isn’t really how Ibuki wanted to do this, but yes!” She declared, fidgeting. A quick silence followed, before she looked back to the other student, eyes wide. “Ah, so… Does Hajime feel the same, or…?”    
  
“O-Oh, I’m sorry, right!” Hajime startled. “Um, well, you’re…”    
  
He stopped, not knowing exactly how to go on.    
  
This was it. This was the moment he’d been agonizing over. Yet, now that he was here, he still had no idea what to say.

  
But despite everything, Ibuki still waited patiently for him to continue. Though she fidgeted in obvious discomfort, she didn’t press him to go on, waiting silently for him to elaborate. 

It wasn’t often that someone stopped to listen to him on this island, he realized; With such a large grouping of such eccentric characters, he was easy to drown out.    
  
But, that wasn’t the case with Ibuki. Despite how she rambled, how she jumped from one idea to another, she still waited for Hajime to organize his thoughts. She still waited now, in the tensest moment of their friendship.

His heart began to beat at the thought.

“... You’re the person I trust the most.” He began. “Not just out of anyone here, but out of anyone I’ve ever met. You’re admirable. You’re so… Absolutely sure of who you are. It’s… Something I really treasure. You’re like… You’re like a beam of light, and you make everyone around you so much happier.”    
  
His breath hitched, a soft, vulnerable look tainting Ibuki’s wide eyes. Pink orbs, even brighter than the clouds over the sunset, stared back at him.

“You always care about what I have to say, and no matter what you’re doing, you dedicate yourself to it so fully…”    
  
They looked on at him quietly, black pupils widening and contracting as he spoke.

“And when you’re happy, it’s always so clear on your face. It's like your whole body lights up with joy.” 

Her hair began to flow along with the wind as the breeze grew slightly stronger, wisps of white trailing through the air.   
  
“And everything you do, every plan, every game you involve me in, it’s always so unexpected. But even though it’s unexpected, you usually manage to make everything fun, too.” 

As his voice began to soften, he could see Ibuki tensing up, peering up at him through multicolored bangs. Streaks of blue matched the backdrop of the ocean behind them.

It was then that Hajime realized that in his poem, each color he’d described was a piece of Ibuki’s appearance. Her hair, her stockings, the pale skin, the pink clouds. It was all her. Beautiful, excitable her.    
  
It was then that his answer became clear. Even when he didn’t mean to, he was always thinking about her in some way. He was always reminded of her when he looked at beautiful things. When he saw the sunrise, the stars, the sea, she was always in the back of his head.    
  
And she was always a pleasant thought. A pleasant feeling. Heartbeat racing during her schemes, during her excited play, yes. But more importantly, she was a sense of comfort in a place where everything else was turned against him. A sense of affection. A sense of love.

Love wasn’t just heart-pounding, face-reddening, word-tumbling excitement, no. Though it could manifest that way, it could also be softer.    
  
It could feel like the only source of full, complete relaxation, complete  _ trust _ , not present anywhere else. 

Though it’d taken him entirely too long to figure out, Hajime understood now that he was in love with his best friend. 

  
“I… I like you too, Ibuki.” 

  
As though she’d been held back only by his hesitation, and as though those words were the only permission she needed to surge forward, Ibuki’s lips crashed into his.    
  
Hajime startled, tensing, before settling into the girl’s affection, body relaxing as he slowly wrapped his arms around her, finding himself not really minding the surprise.   
  
The sensation of cherry chapstick and the lingering flavor of sour candy overwhelmed his senses. 

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Birthday, friend! If you're not the friend I'm referring to, I hope you enjoyed this anyway, but if you ARE the friend, hi! I hope you liked this. I know you tend to like angstier stuff more, but I don't really know how to write this ship particularly well, so I had to stick to fluff. Maybe not even good fluff, I dunno. Hope that everything was fairly in-character, but eh, probably not. I'm fairly confident in Ibuki, but Hajime is kinda difficult... Either way, though, I hope you liked it, even if it's bad! 
> 
> Fun facts:
> 
> -I watched through Ibuki's Free Time Events before this on Youtube. As it turns out, that may or may not have been a mistake
> 
> -I already somewhat know how to write her, but thanks to some of the text that triggers when you choose to hang out with her sometimes, that gave me the whole poetry idea. Which, uh. I don't know whether or not that was actually pulled off well. I'm fairly confident in the poem, I guess, but I'm not confident this is the kind of stuff HAJIME would say. However, canonically he CAN recite Ibuki poetry to inspire her while they hang out, so... Yeah. 
> 
> -This DOES take place during the killing game, though that's a minor plot point; In case you were wondering where this takes place exactly, it takes place directly before Mahiru gets killed. This is evident by the brief mention of hanging out with Kazuichi later in the afternoon.
> 
> -This is also why they're hanging out at a beach and not the music venue
> 
> And that's about all I can think to mention. Whoever you are, I hope you liked this! Thanks for reading!


End file.
